The guinea pig, also known as the Dutch pig, Dutch guinea pig, cavy, or Guinea hog, has a tortoise shell pattern on its body. Its ancestors came from the Andes Mountains in South America and were brought to the West by European merchants in the 16th century. At that time, people liked this small animal very much and kept it as a pet. They are gentle, cute, and relatively easy to care for, and are still common pets today. Some organizations around the world have been committed to breeding guinea pigs, and people have bred various breeds with different colors and forms.
The guinea pig, also known as the Dutch pig, Dutch guinea pig, cavy, or Guinea hog, has a tortoise shell pattern on its body. Its ancestors came from the Andes Mountains in South America and were brought to the West by European merchants in the 16th century. In recent years, various small pet rodents have captured the hearts of many friends with their cute appearance. We have introduced a lot of related knowledge about various small pet rodents before. Today we are going to introduce the guinea pig, which is also a very popular pet rodent. The guinea pig, also known as RareTortoiseshell in English, has a tortoise shell pattern on its whole body, weighs 400 to 700 grams, has a round and short body shape, a large head, big round and bright eyes, round ears, split upper lip, and short ears. Its four limbs are short, with 4 toes on the front feet and 3 toes on the hind feet, without external tails. They are gentle in nature, cute and easy to take care of. They are still common household pets. Some organizations in the world are competing to breed guinea pigs, and people have bred various breeds with different fur colors and shapes. The guinea pig, also known as the Dutch pig, Dutch guinea pig, cavy, Guinea hog, or Guinea pig, although its other name is Guinea pig, it is not actually a pig, just its living habits are similar to those of pigs. This type of rodent reproduces by laying eggs, and its lively and cute nature is amazing. The guinea pig has been the focus of people's attention and love for a while, and its status has not declined. It has attracted more and more attention! The guinea pig is slightly smaller in size and has a medium body shape. Its whole body is covered with orange and black hair. The eye contour is very clear. It can be clearly seen that the face, front of the back, and back to the tail of the small rodent are all orange-yellow, while the remaining parts are black.
It is recommended to keep guinea pigs for pet lovers. They are a bit shy and sensitive to their surroundings. They can easily be alarmed by loud noises and unfamiliar environments, and when they are scared or in danger, they will make a "zhizhizhi" sound. In addition, they naturally prefer to live in dry areas, so parents should pay attention to this when raising them.
Scabies
Scabies is caused by the contamination of guinea pig living environment. It mainly infests around the eyes and ears of the guinea pig.Scabies can cause scabies, just as if scabies eat the guinea pig's fur, causing patchy baldness. Once signs of scabies are found, it is necessary to seek medical diagnosis and treatment. The general treatment method is to inject insecticidal injection.It can also be applied to the affected area by diluting the agricultural Diwhite insecticide with a ratio of 1:100 (a little bit of addition to the guinea pig has no big harm). In addition, it is necessary to thoroughly disinfect the cage, otherwise scabies will return.
Bacterial Infection
The main symptom is patchy baldness on the head, which is extremely similar to scabies symptoms, sometimes even doctors cannot distinguish. This disease is caused by high air humidity, long-term consumption of concentrated feed, etc. This disease is similar to Hong Kong foot in humans and dandruff will appear on the skin.
Diarrhea
Gastroenteritis caused by the use of unclean food. The symptoms are obvious, that is, the feces are not formed. If this symptom is found, seek medical treatment immediately. Diarrhea is very dangerous for guinea pigs, because sometimes we do not know which food causes diarrhea. If it is common diarrhea, taking medicine can cure it. If it is diarrhea caused by chemical poisoning, even if it is sent to the hospital in the first time, it is difficult to save lives. So be careful.
Flatulence
Caused by eating inappropriate food, such as pears. Flatulence can cause suffocation and heart failure. So when the situation is serious, seek medical treatment early.
Constipation
Caused by excessive dryness of food and insufficient water intake. It can be cured by increasing water intake and providing vegetables and fruits with more water content.
Excessive Hair Loss
Guinea pigs shedding hair is as normal as humans losing hair. However, excessive hair loss is abnormal and is caused by a lack of vitamin C. The treatment method is to mix vitamin C powder into food or water for supplement. Vitamin powder is sour, so some guinea pigs will refuse to eat it. At this time, it should be fed to them with a syringe.
External Injuries
Quickly wipe the bleeding area with animal-specific iodine to prevent bacterial invasion.
Living Environment. The guinea pig does not have many requirements for its environment and is very suitable for the environment in which humans live. As long as you prepare a suitable size cage for them, it doesn't matter if the cage is not high, but it must be wide. The material is best made of synthetic material that will not be chewed. It is best to cover the bottom of the cage with newspaper or pet carpet. Wood shavings are not good for the respiratory organs of guinea pigs, so it is best not to use them. Also, guinea pigs are afraid of the cold but not the heat, so keeping them warm is important. Put in some newspapers and toilet paper. Let the guinea pig out of the cage to play every day, otherwise it will get bored. Feeding. The guinea pig's food must include Timothy grass, and the feed should be added in the morning and evening, and it should drink cool boiled water. Guinea pigs are recommended to be raised with alfalfa hay before six months old, and Timothy grass is recommended after six months. Also, guinea pigs have sensitive smell and may have a sense of disgust towards foods with strong odors, so try not to feed it foods with strong odors. (1) When letting the guinea pig out to play, remember to pay attention to items such as electrical plugs in the room, and do not let the guinea pig chew on them, otherwise the consequences will be very serious. (2) Guinea pigs have many natural enemies, especially cats and dogs, so try to keep them away from cats and dogs. If you already have cats or dogs at home, it is not recommended to keep guinea pigs. (3) Soy products, such as tofu, contain a high content of calcium, which reacts with oxalic acid in some vegetables to form calcium oxalate, which can have harmful effects on the guinea pig's body, such as urinary tract stones.
After taking a bath, blow dry a small amount of water and lay a towel on yourself. Hold the guinea pig in your arms and blow dry it. If you have prepared food, you can feed them at this time. The reason for laying the towel on yourself is because guinea pigs are warm and it can prevent them from getting wet. It can also help absorb the moisture from their bellies. We often can't blow dry the water under their bellies, but doing so might make the guinea pigs catch a cold. If you turn the guinea pig upside down to blow dry, it will be very uncomfortable for them. So laying a towel is very useful. Feeding the guinea pig is to divert their attention to the food. Many guinea pigs are not used to blow dryers and are afraid of the sound. Therefore, they will hide in clothes or run away. With food, the guinea pig's attention will be shifted and they won't run away. After the guinea pig finishes eating, their brain will naturally adapt a little bit to the blow dryer and they won't run away as fiercely, and eventually they won't run away at all.
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